Hosted storage services, such as cloud-based storage services, store data on a server which is located at a facility that is remote from the locations where the data is generated or used. The remote servers are typically hosted by a third party, who allows the data's owner and authorized users to access the data over a communications network such as the Internet.
Encryption is the process of converting data from an unencrypted format to an encrypted format. The unencrypted format is readable and unsecured. The encrypted format, sometimes called ciphertext, is unreadable except to those who can decrypt the data using, for example, an encryption key.
The process of obtaining and using encryption keys can be cumbersome to the end user. This document describes methods and systems that are directed to addressing some of the problems described above, and/or other problems.